STAY COOL Responds to Recent Media Coverage

In response to recent topics on climate change and the (lack of) action, STAY COOL Advisory Council members submitted the following articles that were published recently in the San Diego Union-Tribune:

The reality is that we can’t change human nature or the “American Dream.” San Diego, like most American cities, has the liability of being a relatively young city that embraced the suburban lifestyle many generations ago.

What we can change is the fuel used to support our lifestyle. An electric vehicle (EV) becomes a vehicle to achieve this change. (Pun intended.)

We can drive EVs, as affordable ones are now coming to market. We can put solar on our roofs and use the sun to power our EVs. We can support penalties for pollution with significant gas taxes. Buses and other large vehicles can be electrified.

We are not going to transform San Diego into Copenhagen or Paris, but we can decarbonize our transportation.

Re “EPA Chief: Global Warming may not be bad” (Feb. 8): Scott Pruitt’s statement that global warming may not be a bad thing is beyond belief.

Americans who have experienced unprecedented flooding, wildfires and droughts would certainly disagree. If this much devastation can happen with 1 degree Celsius of warming, what should we expect in 2100 when we’re on track for as much as 5 degrees Celsius?

Recently, we’ve seen a White House staffer step down for allegedly abusing two ex-wives. What is the appropriate consequence for a cabinet member endangering the entire planet. It’s time for Pruitt to go.

Laura Schumacher Bay Park

Response to County of San Diego CAP

Chairwoman Kristin Gaspar stated: “It’s important to remember that all CAP measures come with a cost, and at the end of the day, all of these costs are realized either directly or indirectly by our residents.” Interesting point.

By passing the ineffective, developer-friendly CAP, Ms Gaspar and the BOS are passing on an economic liability to our children and grandchildren to mitigate and adapt to a fiercely changing climate. Ask survivors of recent wildfires and hurricanes about the cost.

What price will we pay when natural resources become scarcer? What about the cost for heat-related impacts on public health?

These are called economic externalities. Ms. Gaspar and the BOS remain willfully oblivious to the financial burden they have given to 750,000 children in San Diego today. That is unconscionable and inexcusable.